If, like me, you had been a Girlguide or Scout whenever you had been a baby, it’s possible you’ll properly have joyful reminiscences of toasting marshmallows round a campfire. Or attempting your hand at archery or canoeing, or tenting in a rain-soaked area.
What you may not know, nonetheless, is that the historical past of Guiding is lengthy, slightly shocking, and never with out its controversies. In the present day, Girlguiding champions constructing the boldness and abilities of its younger feminine members. However the unique goals of the organisation weren’t so admirable.
Do it Like a Lady
The founding of the Girlguiding motion got here sizzling off the heels of the Scouting motion. Robert Baden-Powell, a embellished British Military Officer, based the Boy Scouts in In 1907. The intention was to instill patriotic values and self-discipline in boys. The primary Scouting Rally happened at Crystal Palace in London in 1909.
In response to the male motion, a gaggle of ladies gate-crashed the primary Scouting Rally in selfmade uniforms and badges, demanding ‘one thing for women.’ Agnes, the sister of Robert, established the Girlguiding Affiliation in 1910 and have become its president.
Woman Baden-Powell addresses from the steps of St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, c. 1953.
© The Scotsman Publications Ltd. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
Right here in Scotland, nonetheless, a 13-year-old woman named Allison Cargill had established her personal patrol a complete yr earlier than Agnes Baden-Powell formally based the motion. Together with 5 buddies from Laurel Financial institution College, they fashioned the Cuckoo Patrol and met often within the secure loft of Allison’s dwelling. Allison went on to develop into Scotland’s first Girlguide and in 1953 grew to become President of Girlguiding Scotland.
That is an archive photograph of Laurel Financial institution College on Lilybank Terrace, Strathclyde. Zoom in on Canmore
The story to date sounds pleasant, I’ll admit: teenage women forming their very own patrols and rebelliously crashing the male-dominated motion to claim their proper to hitch within the enjoyable. The fact, nonetheless, is slightly completely different, and as with all historical past, it’s not as rosy because it first seems.
Scouting for boys – and women?
The core principals of the Scouting motion had been condensed right into a handbook, helpfully titled “Scouting for Boys”. Within the guide, Baden-Powel outlines the core values of the motion. He meant it to be an tutorial information on tips on how to be an excellent Scout. But it surely appeared solely truthful that the Guides ought to get the identical. “The Handbook for Lady Guides or How Ladies Can Assist Construct Up the Empire” was the primary version and tailored a lot of the Scout content material however with a number of key variations.
In addition to abilities resembling tenting, monitoring, treating accidents, and sports activities, the Guiding handbook taught abilities resembling housekeeping, caring for kids, and nursing. The guidebook claimes that it was important for women to be taught these abilities so they might develop into good wives and moms and help males of their preservation and defence of the British Empire. The guidebook cautions its reader: ‘We endeavour to point out the woman that her personal sphere is one of the best, and that her place is just not because the rival to males, however because the complement or helpmate’. A lot for woman energy.
A replica of the Ambulance Badge handbook, this copy belonging to a member of the eighth Midlothian Guides.
© Midlothian Guides. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
‘Serving to Construct Up the Empire’
The imperial sentiments of this primary guidebook ring clear and can’t be ignored. One tutorial campfire story tells of younger Ann, a Canadian woman who hears of an impending assault on her city by members of the indigenous inhabitants. Solely by utilizing her wilderness abilities is she capable of rush to the Church and warn the group in time to stop the assault. The message right here is that with the proper abilities, the typical British woman will be good sufficient to assist herself and her group of their defence of the Empire.
The feelings of the guidebook undoubtedly bolstered the damaging imperial mindset current in Britain presently in addition to educating women that, sure, they will be taught wilderness abilities, however solely to serve their fathers, brothers, and future husbands.
Fortunately, these imperial themes discovered within the first handbook didn’t final lengthy, by the 1918 version, a lot of this sentiment was eliminated and the concentrate on growing new abilities was bolstered. Nonetheless, the sense of patriotism and serving the nation remained.
Girlguiding within the Archives
One of many extra optimistic, if considerably stereotypical, components of Girlguiding is the tenting journeys. If (like me) you discovered getting rained on in fields pleasing, it was a recipe for a contented weekend! If not… they could have been barely much less pleasing, however no much less memorable. The Scran archive holds many archive photographs of joyful campers from occasions previous.
The Currie Firm of Girlguides pictured in 1926, in all probability at Kinleith.
© Nationwide Museums Scotland. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
The Currie Firm pictured above sport their uniforms proudly – one other memorable factor of Guiding. It might shock you (or maybe not at this level) that these unique uniforms, with wide-brimmed hats and collared shirts, had been primarily based on the uniforms of troopers from the Boer Wars in South Africa. This battle between the British Empire and the Boer States was devastating in its destruction of the South African land and other people, and rightly stays an instance of British colonial ruthlessness and cruelty.
The uniforms of the Guides, just like the handbook, had been tailored to tone down the colonial influences. By the Sixties and 70s, the uniforms develop into barely extra informal and higher suited to tenting and outside journey – or barbequing, within the case of those Edinburgh Guides.
A bunch of Girlguides maintain a barbeque at Reid Memorial Church, Edinburgh.
© The Scotsman Publications Ltd. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
Many Information teams made visits to historic websites for academic or leisure causes, a lot as immediately. The group from Loanhead within the picutre under are possible visiting Dryburgh Abbey close to Melrose. The positioning is now within the care of Historic Surroundings Scotland.
A Group of Guides from first Loanhead Firm go to a historic web site, possible Dryburgh Abbey.
© Miss Angela Stewart. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
The Fashionable Girlguide
In the present day, Girlguiding celebrates the other of what the youth teams had been initially based for. It champions feminine empowerment, range and equality, and physique confidence. The times of the Nursing and Housekeeping Badges are over. Now, women can full their Activism Badge, Vlogging Badge, and Aware Shopper Badge. After I was a Information, I proudly accomplished my Confectioners Badge, not by way of any burning want to develop into an excellent spouse and mom, however just because I wished to eat cake.
The spiritual factor of Guiding has additionally modified. All members of Girlguiding make their Promise at varied factors all through their time with Guides. The Promise encapsulates the core values of being a Information. It’s considered because the second when a woman ‘formally’ turns into a Information. Initially, Guides promised to ‘do (their) obligation to God and the King’. This modified to ‘love my God, to serve my Queen and my nation’ by the point I made my Promise. Many Girlguide teams met in church halls and had been closely concerned in native Christian communities, typically processing to church on Sundays and being concerned within the companies. This, understandably, was very exclusionary to these of non-Christian religion and felt archaic even ten years in the past once I was a Information.
In the present day, Girlguiding has acknowledged that their membership is basically now not Christian and has modified to Promise accordingly. Now, women promise ‘to be true to myself and develop my beliefs’ and ‘to serve the King and my group’. Moreover, teams in numerous faith-based communities just like the Edinburgh Muslim Scout group, eighth Braid Salaam Scouts, are additionally turning into extra widespread.
Since 1991, Scouting has been totally accessible to women. Now, there are much more alternatives for younger women to seek out inclusive areas the place they will strive new issues and develop their abilities.
Braid Muslim Scouts visiting Stirling Fortress in 2022.
Girlguiding and Scouting present simple worth to their younger members immediately and each are removed from the place they started. The imperial imaginative and prescient set out by the Baden-Powells is rightly acknowledged as dangerous, outdated, and deplorable. These beliefs don’t characterise the organisations immediately. Nonetheless, remembering their historical past is important to understanding how Guiding and Scouting got here to be and figuring out the place they’ll go subsequent.
Discover Scotland’s historical past together with your group
Uniformed teams resembling Guides and Scouts can go to Historic Surroundings Scotland properties totally free with our free studying visits. Observe the hyperlink to seek out out extra or guide a go to on your group.
There are lots of extra tales of Scotland’s ladies’s historical past to discover. Learn extra on our weblog.
Header picture: The Brownie pack at Johnstone, Renfrewshire, c. 1929 © Nationwide Museums Scotland. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk
